Critical Investigation of New Jersey's Loan Program

New Jersey's state student loan program lacks protections that federal and many state programs have, according to an investigation by ProPublica, co-published with The New York Times. The article notes that the loan program does not forgive the loans of students who die, and just sends bills to the parents of the students. Further, the article says that interest rates are higher than comparable programs. A bankruptcy lawyer told ProPublica that the program is “state-sanctioned loan sharking.”

Marcia Karrow, chief of staff of the New Jersey Higher Education Student Assistance Authority, said that “the vast majority of these borrowers are happy with the program.”